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Real Thailand

From the hills to the beaches, experience authentic Thailand on this 17-day trip.

Leave behind the hordes of backpackers in crowded Bangkok and head into parts of Thailand that lots of travellers never see. By the time they’re up and ready to shake off last night’s hangover, you’ll be on your way to Sukhothai, a tiny city also known as the Dawn of Happiness. From there, it just keeps getting better. Sure, you’ll see the vaunted beaches of Koh Samui and the Golden Triangle, but you’ll also meet gorgeous elephants in Chiang Mai and sip tea with locals who live in the hills of Doi Mae Salong. Now THIS is Thailand.

This trip is for 18 to 29-year-olds

Some of our under-30 travellers prefer to get around with people their own age. If that’s you, you’re in the right place!

Over 29? We’ve got over 900 other great adventures to choose from for solo travellers, friends, families, food lovers, hiking enthusiasts, and more.

Travel more, deposit less. Book now with just CHF 50!

Save a space on your 2019 trip with only a CHF 50 deposit until 31 August 2018.

Travel more, deposit less. Book now with just CHF 50!

Save a space on your 2019 trip with only a CHF 50 deposit until 31 August 2018.

GBP50/EUR50/CHF50/ZAR1250 deposit offer must be redeemed between 1 – 31 August 2018 and can be used on any 2019 trip.
Offer excludes Christmas departures from 15 December – 31 December 2019.
The deposit can be used towards any Intrepid small group adventure, Intrepid short breaks and Dragoman trips with the below exclusions: Polar trips – includes all itineraries in the Arctic and Antarctica; Private groups; Eat your way around the world trip; Gorilla treks where pre-purchased permits are required to secure the trek to see the Gorillas. Excluded trips are: YDOU, YXOG, YXOCC, YXOIC, YXOEC, YXOGC, YXOFC, UXODC, YGAG, YGAR; Inca Trail trips where pre-purchased permits are required to secure the trek. Excluded trips are: GGSQ, GGTA, GGSEC, GGTBC, GGSA, GGSD, GGSYC, GGSUC, GGKP, GGTWC, GGFB, GGKY, GGHT, GGCLC, GGHC, GDOP, GDOL, GDOKC, GDOMC, GDOO, GDOB, GDOBC, GDOTC, GDODC, GDOEC, GGBL, GGHC-O; Patagonia trips including the W-Walk. Excluded trips are: GDOD, GDOE, GDOI, GDOJ. Normal deposits apply to these trips.
Balance is payable within 56 days of departure except for Intrepid Adventure Cruising departures which are payable within 90 days of departure.
Full name of passengers must be provided at time of booking. Passengers are not able to hold multiple departures for overlapping dates.
Offer applies to land element of tour only and cannot be redeemed against international flights.
The offer can only be applied to new bookings. Under no circumstances will the offer be applied to existing bookings or used in conjunction with another offer or discount.
Deposit amount is payable per person.
If the traveller wishes to change dates or tours, they will be required to pay the full GBP200/EUR275/CHF300/ZAR4000 deposit towards the new trip. This is applicable even inside the promotional period.
Prices, itineraries and inclusions are subject to change without notice. Standard booking conditions apply as per Intrepid website, www.intrepidtravel.com.

Why you'll love this trip

Dumbo isn't the only elephant that needs saving. Travel by private minivan to the Friends of the Asian Elephant Hospital and witness the awesome work these guys do on a daily basis

Bike? Check. Shades? Check. Wind in your hair? Check. Sukhothai's Historical Park is the kind of dreamscape you don't have to wake up from

Swing 'til your winning and zip through the canopies at Flight of the Gibbon, an optional activity that will get your heart racing. This is just another brilliant excuse to act like a cheeky little monkey

Feel like one of the locals on an overnight train from Chiang Mai to Bangkok. Grab some snacks from the on-board vendors, utilise your phrase book and embrace this unique journey

Obsessed with the Tom Yam Goong at your local Thai joint? Imagine how much better it would be in Thailand, on a beach, with a cocktail, at sunset. Nice, eh?

Koh Samui is a slice of paradise. Cruise the island, go chasing waterfalls and feel peachy on the beach before carving up the dance floor in one of Koh Samui's famous bars

Kick back for a few days in Ao Nang. Plenty of free time to take up optional activities like, cook some food in a Thai cooking class, cook yourself in some hot springs or paddle to a hidden lagoon on Koh Hong island

More fun in kayaks, coves and canyons is to be had in the mangrove forests of Ao Thalane. Don't let the local troublemakers (macaque monkeys) steal your camera

Need more reasons? Here are 7 more why we love it: intrepidtravel.com/adventures/southern-thailand/

Is this trip right for you?

We visit a number of temples on this trip, which requires a certain level of modesty. Please bring clothes that cover the arms and pants/skirts that go past the knees. A light scarf is also a good idea for covering shoulders and arms when it’s hot.

This trip involves some long journeys on the road, lots of public transport (songthaews, public buses) and an overnight train, which can be tiresome. Although conditions are basic, overnight trains are a true local experience and the best way to travel long distances, meet locals and maximise time at your destinations. Occasionally passengers of different genders will be required to share a compartment and/or you'll be sharing with locals or travellers from other groups. For your own security, take a lock for your luggage.

As this is a Basix trip, the majority of activities are optional and you'll have lots of free time. This means you're able to do your own thing at your own pace.

Accommodation can be simple but it's always comfortable.

Gallery

Itinerary

Welcome to Bangkok, Thailand. Once you’ve hit Khao San Road, you’re officially on holiday. There’s a welcome meeting at around 6 pm tonight. Please look for a note in the hotel lobby or ask the hotel reception where it will take place. If you're going to be late, please inform the hotel reception. We'll be collecting your insurance details and next of kin information at this meeting, so please ensure you have all these details to provide to your leader. If you can't arrange a flight that will arrive in time, you may wish to arrive a day early so you're able to attend. We'll be happy to book additional accommodation for you (subject to availability). If you arrive early perhaps take a riverboat to Chinatown and explore the crowded streets, or head to the magnificent Grand Palace. Our pick for cocktails is Bed Supper Club or Vertigo. Ask your guide for directions or grab your new travel mates and attempt to navigate the Skytrain.

Accommodation

Hotel (1 night)

Optional Activities

Bangkok - Thai Massage - THB250

Bangkok - Grand Palace - THB500

Bangkok - Temple & River of Kings Urban Adventure - THB2465

Bangkok - Tuk Tuk Experience Urban Adventure - THB1790

Bangkok - Bangkok by Bike Urban Adventure - THB1904

Meals Included

Take a six-hour local bus to Sukhothai, AKA the ‘dawn of happiness’. That sounds like a pretty swell place to spend a day, right? Pick yourself up a pushy, and head out on a guided cycle tour of Sukhothai’s Historical Park and World Heritage-listed ancient city. Roll your bike around the temples and other archaeological relics within the area. Apparently riding a bike helps build new brain cells in the hippocampus – the bit of your brain responsible for memory. This is great, cos now you won’t forget all the gorgeous temples you cycle past today.

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Included Activities

Sukhothai - Historical Park bike tour & picnic lunch

Meals Included

Rise and shine for a five-hour private minivan drive to hillside Chiang Mai. Stop in at the Friends of the Asian Elephant Hospital in Lampang to meet some big-footed friends being nursed back to good health. Arrive in Chiang Mai in the late afternoon. With over 120 temples in the city centre alone, you can easily while away a few hours doing a temple run. On the other hand, if you’re all templed out, perhaps indulge in a thai massage or hit up the Night Bazaar and get haggling.

Accommodation

Hotel (1 night)

Included Activities

Lampang - Friends of the Asian Elephant

Meals Included

Today you're free as a bird, maybe get flying on the Flight of the Gibbon and negotiate the zipline and canopy course within the treetops. Or take an optional excursion to the temple at the top of Doi Suthep, which offers fantastic views over the city. Perhaps spoil yourself with a traditional Thai massage or try your hand at a local cooking class. It's totally up to you.

Accommodation

Hotel (1 night)

Optional Activities

Chiang Mai - Flight of the Gibbon zipline - THB3999

Chiang Mai - Bicycle tour - THB950

Chaing Mai - Baan Thai Cookery School Half Day Course - THB800

Chiang Mai - Doi Suthep temple - THB50

Chiang Mai - Thai massage - THB200

Chiang Mai - Urban Adventures - Mind & Soul - THB2317

Chiang Mai - Urban Adventures - Mae Ping River Experience - THB2534

Meals Included

Doi Mae Salong is a seriously good-looking tea plantation way up in the hills of the Golden Triangle. Not only are the views incredible, you’ll also get to meet some seriously lovely hill-tribe villagers as you wander. Today travel by public bus and minivan to Doi Mae Salong via Mae Chan (approximately five hours in total). It's the perfect place to relax and kick back for the day. Make sure you enjoy a cup of tea in a traditional Chinese teahouse overlooking the mountains. Check out the interesting market, which is full of produce and crafts made by hill tribe people. For something a little more adventurous, why not climb up the 719 steps to see the town’s Buddhist temple?

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Meals Included

While the Golden Triangle may have gained a little unwanted notoriety in the 1920s for its opium trade, today it remains a lush, mountainous, traditional intersection of Northern Thailand, Laos and Burma. In the morning take a three-hour ride in a minivan to this famous border. Pay a visit to the House of Opium Museum for a deeper insight into this area's problematic past. Continue your travels for around two hours to Chiang Rai, where you’ll stay the night. Perhaps head to Chiang Rai's night market, which is a great place to pick up some hill tribe handicrafts.

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Optional Activities

Chaing Rai - Opium Museum - THB50

Meals Included

Like your temples creepy and kooky and quirky and weird? Good thing we’re stopping in at the White Temple this morning. Although it can be crowded with tourists, this temple is a modern wonder. In the afternoon, take a three-and-a-half-hour public bus back to Chiang Mai and board an overnight train for Bangkok (approximately 13 hours). Soft sleeper class trains are used for the overnight journey. The compartments are multi-share with air-conditioning and bunk beds that come with sheets and a pillow. Baggage travels in the carriage with you, and there's a food and drink service available on-board.

Accommodation

Overnight sleeper train (1 night)

Included Activities

Chiang Rai - Wat Rong Kun (White Temple)

Meals Included

Your train is scheduled to arrive into Bangkok in the early morning on Day 8 of the trip. The rest of the day is free to explore. As this is a combination trip, your group leader and the composition of your group may change at this location. There will be a group meeting to discuss the next stage of your itinerary. You're welcome to attend, as this is a great chance to meet your new fellow travellers.

Accommodation

Hotel (1 night)

Meals Included

Today explore some of Bangkok's most famous sights, including the Grand Palace and the adjoining Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew). Please see important information in the 'Packing' section of the trip notes regarding strict dress code for the Grand Palace visit. There's nothing worse than being turned away from an attraction while all your buddies get to go ahead! Make an optional visit to the temple complex of Wat Pho, which houses the famous 46-metre-long statue of the Reclining Buddha. Enjoy a free afternoon to discover more of the city in your own time. This evening, head south to Surat Thani on a 13-hour overnight train.

Accommodation

Overnight sleeper train (1 night)

Included Activities

Bangkok - Grand Palace

Optional Activities

Bangkok - Jim Thompson's House - THB150

Bangkok - Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn) - THB50

Bangkok - Thai Massage - THB250

Meals Included

Arrive into Surat Thani this morning, continuing by public bus and ferry to Koh Samui (approximately four hours). The island of Koh Samui has been a tourist hotspot for decades, and with good reason. Swim, snorkel or relax in the waterfalls at Na Muang. Take a trip with the group around the island, visiting the 15-metre-tall Big Buddha (Wat Phra Yai). In the evening, perhaps feast on a delicious curry with the group and then join in the carnival that is Koh Samui's famous nightlife.

Accommodation

Resort (1 night)

Included Activities

Ko Samui - half day guided tour

Meals Included

Spend a free day today swimming, lazing in the sun or exploring Koh Samui. You may like to take an optional day tour to Ang Thong Marine National Park by either slow boat or speedboat. The park is an archipelago of over 40 islands in the Gulf of Thailand, featuring pristine beaches, jungle, mangroves and limestone mountains rising out of the sea. Join the hoards of tourists tanning on the beach at Koh Mae island and check out the saltwater lagoon of Thale Nai (Emerald Lake). For a quieter experience and some great snorkelling opportunities, head to the nearby islands of Koh Tao and Koh Nang Yuan.

Accommodation

Resort (1 night)

Optional Activities

Ko Samui - Thai Massage - THB300

Ko Samui - Thai Cooking Class - THB1850

Ko Samui - Day trip to Koh Tao - THB2400

Ko Samui - Ang Thong Marine Park tour - THB2500

Meals Included

Today travel to Khao Sok National Park by songtaew, ferry and mini van. The journey will take a total of about five hours. The park is the wettest spot in Thailand with some of the oldest jungle in the world. See loads of amazing limestone rock faces and, if you're lucky, monkeys playing here and there. Stroll along trails past waterfalls and spend the night in a guesthouse in the jungle.

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Meals Included

Lucky you with all this time in the oldest evergreen rainforest in the world. Your awesome jungle guesthouse sits right outside the entrance to the park, so it's pretty easy to take a hike along any of the numerous dirt trails that snake their way through the park. This place is paradise, especially if you love nature – if you're super lucky there might be a glimpse of elephants, exotic Hornbills, water-loving Langur Monkeys and even the occasional tiger deep inside the park. Head for river and waterfalls and give yourself a cooling dip.

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Optional Activities

Khao Sok NP - entrance fee - THB300

Khao Sok - Night trek (min 4 pax) - THB900

Khao Sok - Canoeing - THB800

Meals Included

Depart by public bus from Khao Sok to the beach town of Ao Nang (approximately three hours). On arrival, settle into your hotel and hit the local beach. Swim or snorkel in the clear water, relax on the sand with a book and sip a cocktail as the sun goes down. You have plenty of free time to do as you please.

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Meals Included

This morning head out on a half-day sea kayaking trip to Ao Thalane. Transfer from your hotel in Ao Nang to Thalane Bay in a van, passing through rural villages on the way. Paddle through mangrove forests, coves and narrow karst-walled canyons, keeping an eye out for kingfishers, herons and crab-eating macaque monkeys. Be careful with your belongings, as the cheeky monkeys can steal them. After some time on the water, return to the pier and enjoy lunch at a local restaurant with a great view over the area. After lunch, transfer back to your hotel in Ao Nang. Enjoy free time for the rest of the afternoon.

Accommodation

Guesthouse (1 night)

Included Activities

Ao Nang - Sea kayaking

Meals Included

Enjoy a free day to relax on the beach or participate in a variety of optional activities. Perhaps unwind with a massage or cook up something delicious in a Thai cooking class. Take a tour out to some of Krabi's naturally-formed crystal pools and hot springs, swimming in the clear waters of the Emerald Lagoon while fish nibble at your toes. You might like to take a trip out to the quiet, pristine island of Koh Hong, where you can snorkel in the shallow reefs and kayak past cliffs to a hidden salt-water lagoon.

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Important notes

1. A Single Supplement to have your own room is bookable on this trip, subject to availability, and excludes Day 7 & Day 9 (overnight train).

Essential trip information

Want an in-depth insight into this trip? Essential Trip Information provides a detailed itinerary, visa info, how to get to your hotel, what's included - pretty much everything you need to know about this adventure and more.